Neighbourhood Associations United to Seek Better Consultation with the City of Vancouver

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West End Community Plan Flawed

November 18, 2013 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Re: West End Community Plan – Council Committee November 20, 2013

Dear Mayor Robertson and Councillors:

The Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods is opposed to the adoption of the West End Community Plan as currently proposed. The West End Community Plan has been flawed in the same ways that you recognized in three other current planning processes, and the West End deserves fairer treatment than immediate adoption will allow.

West End residents tell us that the most important final stage of consultation has been rushed, the community still has many unanswered questions and concerns, and important gaps remain in the content of the draft Plan. We are sure that Council will agree that everyone is seeking a thirty-year plan that West Enders can accept and that the entire city can be proud of. The current Plan does not meet that objective.

We request Council to not adopt the Plan at this time. Instead, we ask that it be referred back to staff and the community, utilizing an improved process, with innovation in engagement techniques to more fully address the community’s concerns. For example, we believe the City should provide visualizations of streetscapes so that the public can see the real impacts of proposed revisions in land use provisions. Knowing that extra work is still required, we also request an extended timeline for completion, and adequate additional funding.

The objective of the Coalition of Vancouver Communities is to create a new development and planning paradigm that will stress community involvement and local influence in land-use and zoning decisions. We have major concerns about the current planning processes. Please be assured that the Coalition is observing with interest how the City addresses the concerns of the West End.